


The Safeword is Sarsaparilla

by PlumBat



Category: The Avengers (2012)
Genre: Anal Sex, Bad Jokes, Communication, Consensual Kink, Cuddling & Snuggling, D/s, Dominance, Dr. Pepperony - Freeform, Explicit Consent, Explicit Sexual Content, F/M, Falling In Love, Hand Jobs, Handcuffs, Kink Negotiation, Light BDSM, Love, M/M, Man I love tags, Multi, Nipple Clamps, OT3, Oral Sex, Polyamory, Rating: NC17, Requited Love, Rough Sex, Safe Sane and Consensual, Safer Sex, Safewords, Science Boyfriends, So much talking, Spanking, Submission, Tenderness, Threesome, Threesome - F/M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-06-16
Updated: 2012-06-16
Packaged: 2017-11-07 22:07:14
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 12,813
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/435969
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PlumBat/pseuds/PlumBat
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After the events of The Avengers movie, Bruce Banner moves into the new Stark-Potts tower in downtown Manhattan. Then things take a turn for the sexy/awesome/kinky. Tony/Pepper/Bruce. Not exactly PWP, but very smut-heavy as it goes along.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Word count: 13,036
> 
> Disclaimer: I do not own The Avengers, Tony Stark, Pepper Potts, Bruce Banner, Rhodes, Jarvis, none of ‘em! Nor do I make any money writing smut about them.  
> Additional notes: Undying gratitude to my betas, PB, ZF, and MB! Seriously, you guys made this possible. Thank you. 
> 
> Check out the fanmix for this story here:  
> <http://plumbat.tumblr.com/post/25079331775/with-pleasure-i-present-to-you-sexy-ecstatic>
> 
> And check out the community I made for this 'ship here:  
> <http://fyeahtonypepperbruce.tumblr.com/>
> 
> I love concrit! If you have a reaction to this, positive or negative, please feel free to let me know!
> 
> There may be more to this at some point. :}

Bruce drifts up out of a heavy nothingness, aware only that his face aches. Why does his face ache? He doesn't remember being in a fight... shit, there's no way he...?! No, he can feel that he's wearing a shirt, so it can't be that. He cracks open an eye to see the smooth plastic of one of Tony's computers. His face is lying on the keyboard. Ah. How the hell did he wind up using one of the few computers in this place that still actually uses a keyboard?

He gathers his will and lifts his head. His neck aches worse than his face. Across from him he sees Tony asleep at another console. Face resting on the smooth surface of the desk, the lucky bastard.

With one leaden hand, he reaches up and taps at the screen. It turns on and his eyes focus on the bottom righthand corner. 3:39pm. He's not sure what to make of that, since he's not sure what day it is. "Jarvis," he croaks.

"Yes, Dr. Banner?"

"Two coffees, one for me and one for Tony."

"One coffee black with light sugar and cardamom, one coffee with a shot of whiskey, two creams, and a tablespoon and a half of sugar. Coming up, sir."

Bruce hears the whir of the modified espresso maker starting up behind him. After a couple of minutes thinking nothing at all, rubbing at his sore cheek, he hoists himself up, makes his way to the machine, and fetches the two hot mugs. He leaves Tony's strong-smelling concoction on the desk by his face and walks into the hallway, taking a small sip from his own mug.

Pepper is walking down the hall with a collection of folders in hand. She stops and smiles at him. "Good afternoon, sunshine."

"Hi."

"Tony still conked out?"

"Mmhm."

"You two..." She shakes her head. "Tell you what, get dressed, wash yourself up, and meet me in my office. I know a place that serves breakfast all day. Tony can come if he wakes up."

Bruce is suddenly aware of the dull ache in his stomach. "Yeah, sounds good. I won't be long."

Tony is in the exact same position when they go to check on him, mouth slightly open, snoring faintly. They leave him and walk together to the diner Pepper had in mind. Over breakfast/dinner they chat about his and Tony's latest breakthroughs, her latest stock acquisitions, Tony's various personal foibles.

After a break in the conversation, Bruce sighs and says, "Well. You'll be happy to know I finally emailed her, like you kept telling me to."

"Ohmygosh, you got in touch with Betty!?" His expression gives her pause. "...how'd it go?"

"She's estranged from her father now. So, that's good. I know that sounds funny to say, but he was *not* a good person."

"...and?"

"And." Bruce smiles thinly. "I asked if there was a way we could meet. Told her I had things under better control now. Turns out she's fixed things up with her boyfriend, and she. Is pregnant."

Pepper's mouth opens, and her face scrunches sadly.

"She said she'll always care for me but it would be better if we kept," he makes air quotes "'some distance for a while.' I can't blame her. I wouldn't want me around my kids. And hey, we each have the closure of knowing the other is okay, and that's more than we had for a long time."

"Oh Bruce." She reaches across the table and lays her hand over one of his. "I'm so sorry."

He shakes his head. "Is this how I want it to be? Of course not. But this way she gets a normal life. She's safe, she gets to have a family. I don't think anyone on the planet could predict what would happen if I had a child. It's..." he says the last word in a tight voice, "better."

Pepper never mentions telling Tony, but over the next few days Bruce finds himself given a new sports car, invited out for a flight in one of the older suits, and brought along for one of the usually-sacrosanct Tony-and-Rhodey-only video-games-and-rifftraxing-bad-porn nights. He is told that the sports car is a bonus for his work in the lab, that there are important things to be learned from testing the way the suits react to different users, and that Rhodey doesn't mind.

The lavish gifts stop there, as do the thrilling but uncomfortably terrifying trips in complicated pieces of machinery that he barely knows how to operate, but he keeps joining Tony and Rhodes for guy nights.

*

Tony types away at his slim phone, absently chewing on a sandwich. Pepper finishes a bite of salad and says, "Oh, hey."

A pause while Tony finishes typing. "Hm?"

"Your boyfriend said to tell you that his phone is dead and he needed to go out, so if you're messaging him he's not getting it right now."

"Why wouldn't he just wait for it to finish charging before going somewhere?" Tony says, swallowing a mouthful of sandwich. "Why would he just let himself be disconnected? And, waaait wait wait, when did you start calling Bruce my boyfriend?"

"You're just noticing that now?"

"Don't be ridiculous, I noticed before. I'm just saying something now."

"But you don't know when I started."

"That would be implied by my question, yes."

"That is..." Pepper smiles and at the last minute says, "adorable." 'Hilarious' had been her first thought, but she likes the way this sounds better. "Anyway, I'm not sure either."

*

"God, that was good," Tony says, sprawled across the bed, hand laced through Pepper's. "Jarvis, fan, medium." The air feels delicious against his bare, sweat-sheened skin.

Pepper curls up against him. "Would you fuck Bruce?"

Tony blinks, turns to look at her, and narrows his eyes as if trying to understand what just happened. "I'm sorry, I am absolutely certain I didn't hear you right."

"I'm just curious." Pepper nuzzles his shoulder. "I've never seen you so interested in anyone, except *maybe* me."

"Wow, what? Definitely you! Anyway, it's a *completely* different thing. You can stop worrying or whatever. I am in no way looking to replace you with my lab partner, babe."

"You don't need to reassure me, I'm not threatened. Bruce is a lovely man."

"Would *you* fuck him?"

Pepper props herself up on one elbow and looks down at Tony, eyebrows raised.

He frowns. "Okay, in an imaginary world where he was into it and you were ok with it. I mean. Fine, yes, I probably totally would. He's like a big scruffy teddy bear. In, y'know, a hot way."

Pepper smiles and settles back down, snuggling closer, lazily kissing his exposed skin. "Good."

"Good?"

"He really, really needs someone to touch him. Poor thing."

"So you're setting him up with *me*?"

"Oh, I'd fuck him too. In a heartbeat."

"I. See."

"Mm, you threatened?" Pepper pecks a tiny kiss at the corner of his mouth.

"...hm. No, actually, no I am not. Huh. Interesting. But. Huh." He pokes her. "Let me get this straight. You're saying you want to, what, have a threesome with me and Bruce?"

"I'm saying I'm game if you are."

"That's... wow." Tony lays looking up at the ceiling for a minute. "I will admit, I am surprised. However," he glances down at himself, "I am also apparently no longer bound by the rules of the refractory period."

"Ooh, let me see."

*

Pepper looks out over the glittering star-scape of Manhattan spread below them, one hand on the glass. After a minute, she returns to the sofa beside Tony and pours herself some more wine. "There is absolutely nothing I don't love about this place... well, when I'm not dealing with bills or staff reports or logistics meetings."

Tony may or may not have actually heard her. He shifts, makes the smallest, thoughtful sound, shifts again. She waits.

"What if he only likes one of us?"

Pepper grins into her glass. "So you've been thinking about it?" It had been several nights since their conversation on the subject, and she had begun to assume that Tony wanted to leave the idea in the realm of fantasy.

Tony rolls his eyes. "Serious question."

"That would be fine."

He stares at her. "Would it?"

"Do I usually lie to you?"

"What if it's not just sex?"

"Tony, he's already become, like, your hetero life-mate... using a loose definition of hetero... in a couple of months. You love him -- ah, stop, do NOT deny it, you do! And it's okay! Whatever this becomes, it's okay! I never thought I could keep you monogamous anyway, so --"

"WOAH, fuck that, no, you think I couldn't be monogamous for you??"

"I think it's not your natural state."

Tony sets down his tumbler, places his hand on Pepper's knee, and looks her in the eyes. "Don't. Okay? Please don't assume you know what I can and can't give you. I know it's the rational thing to draw conclusions from past behavior, but that is not fair to me, it's not fair to us. I thought you knew how serious I am about this."

"Oh honey, I do." Pepper kisses him on the mouth, tasting warmth and heavy scotch. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean that the way it sounded. I trust you." She leans back and considers. "And honestly, yeah, if you told me you'd fucked some bimbo you met earlier today in an elevator, we'd have a major problem. But if it's someone you care about, if it's something real, I don't *want* to deny you that. I'm more worried about whether or not I should be inserting myself into this situation." Tony furrows his brow and cocks his head slightly to one side. She sighs. "Okay, what if we angle for a threesome and he ends up into me and *not* you? Could you handle it if, say, he and I ended up dating and you weren't involved? I'm in no way anticipating that, but we haven't even approached him yet, so who knows how he feels, or... heck, if he's even actually into guys."

Tony scoffs. "Have you met him? I mean, he's not gay, he's had girlfriends, but the man sure as fuck is not straight."

Pepper gives a shrug of agreement. "All I'm saying is, you have a point. This could be unpredictable, and I don't want to somehow steal your boyfriend away from you. Because I'll admit, he's incredibly sweet. If we started something, I might not want to stop. But I don't want to hurt you."

Tony looks down into his glass as if it will tell him something useful. “Obviously, if he was interested in both of us, that would be ideal... that would be *absurdly* hot. I am in actual fact getting a little hard right now." She cocks an eyebrow. "True story," he says. He stands up and begins to pace. "So, assuming you're as into this as I am," he points at her without looking or stopping, "which seems like a fair bet, we *should* see if maybe he would be too. Because, wow. We agree we can’t predict exactly what’ll happen, but that’s alright. If he's only into one of us, we can... do a two-on-one thing, that could work. And down the road, if you guys had a thing, I wouldn’t tell either of you that you had to stop, even if I wasn’t involved." He stops. "I think." Sighing, he sits back down. "Shit, what kind of asshole would that make me? But I... I mean, you're not entirely wrong about me having feelings for the guy." He looks away at nothing in particular, snatches up his glass, and drains it. Then he takes a deep breath. "I'm not sure what they are at this point, but yeah, there are, definitely, feelings. So it *would* be hard for me, if I were on the outside. But I trust you both, and, I don't know, maybe I could at least watch?"

A small, fond smile breaks onto Pepper's face. She slips off the couch and sits at Tony's feet, wrapping her arms around his knees. "We don't have to do this."

"But fucking hell, I *want* to now," he murmurs.

"It'll change things."

"Yeah, maybe." He strokes her cheek with his fingers. "But, fuck it, we’re solid, we can handle this. And taking risks is kind of my thing. In fact, this might be the longest I've ever deliberated on something I wanted without acting on it. You're a bad influence, woman."

"Ha."

Tony kisses her hair. "Let's you and me make our best effort to rock his world. And, whatever comes next, IF anything, we'll figure it out between the three of us. We're incredibly smart people, we'll make it work."


	2. Chapter 2

The smell of fried onions and spices fills the spacious living room. Tony is reclined on a couch. He inhales through his nose, eyes closed, savoring.

Pepper pads into the kitchen on bare feet and leans in the doorway. She is wearing a thin, low-cut white shirt and her favorite cut-off jean shorts. Bruce's back is to her as he moves between various pans and pots. "You sure you don't need any help, Bruce?"

He turns towards her, face open and graced with a lopsided smile. Sweat plasters the fringe of his hair to his forehead. He is also barefoot, shirt untucked, first several buttons undone to reveal a patch of dark hair. "I'm running low on ways to say 'thanks, but no', so if you could help me think of some more that'd be helpful."

Pepper snorts. "Have it your way. It smells *amazing* in here, by the way. I didn't know we had all these spices."

Bruce turns back to his various creations-in-progress and resumes stirring and flipping. "You didn't, I found a great little shop a few blocks away. Here, actually, try this and tell me if it's too spicy." He turns and holds up a wooden spoon filled with something red flecked with green.

Pepper walks up but stops short, so that she has to lean rather far forward, purses her lips and blows on the curry. She flicks her eyes up to Bruce's face for a split second and feels a gratified flush when she sees that his eyes are fixed somewhere lower than her face. She reaches out and clasps his wrist to hold it steady, then laves at the curry with her tongue like a cat. She is fully, completely aware of Bruce's solid presence just inches from her in a way that she wasn't moments ago. She sucks the last of the curry off the spoon, then releases his wrist and slowly leans back. "It's perfect," she purrs.

Bruce clears his throat. "Ah -- good, good!" Pepper glances down at his lips, so soft-looking for a man's. Bruce shifts in place, looking as if he'd like to say something but isn't sure what. "Okay, I'll, uh, keep it just like that then." He turns back to the stove. "Shouldn't be more than another twenty minutes."

Pepper saunters back into the living room, chewing on one knuckle and grinning. Tony raises an eyebrow at her. She smiles wider.

When the food is ready, Bruce brings it out to the low table one dish at a time, and sets cold beers by Tony and Pepper's plates. Pepper takes a large armchair for herself, pushing it up to the table. Tony stays on the couch and Bruce settles in next to him. They dig in.

"I can't believe you made this whole feast by yourself!" Pepper says.

"Yeah," Tony says through a mouthful of naan. "Mm. This is just awesome. Wow. Seriously." Chewing. "So good."

Bruce smiles and takes a sip from his glass of mango juice. "It's simple stuff, really."

"MM, and this beer is *perfect* with this," Pepper says.

"You can have mine, if you want," Tony says. He took a small sip of beer to be polite, but has since gotten himself an actual drink.

"Ha, no." Bruce says. "Not a good idea."

"C'mon, one --"

"Tony," Pepper says. He shuts up.

They work their way through the meal slowly, chatting about a hundred different things. By the time the food is mostly gone, they are all comfortably slouched. Pepper has turned sideways in her chair, letting her feet dangle off one side. Bruce is curled up in a loose ball in one corner of the couch, Tony sprawled lengthwise across the rest of it.

"Um, Tony?" Bruce says.

"Mm?"

Bruce glances down at his bare foot, which Tony has begun rubbing up and down with his sock-covered toes. He looks back up at Tony. Tony's face is neutral. He slides his foot up along Bruce's pants leg.

"What's up?" Tony asks, expression unchanged.

"Uhm. You don't do subtle, do you," Bruce says.

"I don't know what you're talking about, I'm well known for my subtlety. Tell him, Pepper."

Pepper makes a vaguely pleased, non-committal sound. Bruce looks at her, takes in her shy smile, and looks back at Tony.

"So, you guys are trying to seduce me," Bruce says slowly, with just a hint of a question at the end.

Tony props himself up and looks at Bruce, his calf now pressed against Bruce's leg. "Do you mind?"

"Well, I'm flattered. But it's not going to work."

"Why not?" Tony asks.

"Are you -- ?" Bruce tips his head back and looks at the ceiling. "God, I would... you *have* to realize how crazy this is."

"To be fair to Tony, it was my idea," Pepper says. "Don't feel pressured; it's fine if nothing happens, it completely is. We just both really like you."

Bruce shuts his eyes and says nothing, doesn't move. A full minute passes.

"Honey, shit, did we break him?" Tony sounds genuinely concerned.

"If things go wrong, I could *kill* you," Bruce sighs, head still tilted back, eyes still closed.

"Newsflash Big Guy, I could -- er, alright, I probably couldn't kill you without spending a solid day thinking through how to do it."

Bruce frowns slightly. This means that, if Tony is being honest, he hasn't yet tried to come up with a fail-safe plan to kill him.

"I could kill Pepper, though, easy," Tony says.

"Hey!" Pepper says.

"The thing is, I wouldn't," Tony continues. He shifts forward and puts a hand on Bruce's leg. "And you wouldn't either. You said the heart rate thing alone isn't a problem anymore. So what are you afraid of, that feeling good is somehow going to piss you off?"

"Are you going to just avoid all human contact forever?" Pepper gently joins in. "I don't know about you guys, but if I don't get any I start to feel like I'm going to rage-out myself. So that seems counter-productive."

Bruce opens his eyes and looks at her wearily.

"God, when you look like that I just want to hug you. Is it ok if I hug you?" she asks. He responds with something between a shrug and a nod, then glances at Tony. His friend gives him a small, encouraging smile.

Pepper unfolds herself from the chair and walks around behind Bruce, whose back is against one arm of the couch. She puts her hands on his shoulders and nudges him. He obliges, scooting towards Tony, and she slides onto the couch behind him, wrapping her arms around his chest from behind. He scrunches his eyes shut again and lets out a huff of air. She lays her cheek against his shoulder.

After a few moments, Bruce speaks. "Don't get me wrong. I'm certainly... It's not like I haven't thought... about." Bruce sighs again. "Yeah. You two are both..." He opens his mouth, closes it. "Heh, wow, this is hard to talk about."

"Take your time," Pepper says.

Tony begins massaging one of Bruce's feet. "This okay?" he asks.

"Yeah. Mmf, that is more than okay, that is great."

Pepper feels Bruce relax a little against her. He opens his eyes and looks somewhere off to the left.

"The thing is, I don't know if it would just be. Sex. To me. You guys are basically my only friends, aside from Rhodes. So, one, I don't want to screw that up, and two, I don't know if I can do casual."

"No one's setting any rules here," Tony says. "I can't promise anything, but I think we're both open to, y'know, whatever. And, actually, scratch that, I *can* promise one thing. We won't stop being your friends."

"Exactly," Pepper says.

"How can you guys not get it?" Bruce says. "What happens if it doesn't work out? How could you ever feel safe breaking it off with me? People can go to really dark places when relationships fall apart. And I don't do dark well. That sounds like a nightmare, 'Hey, I'd like to end this, but if I do, I might get smashed into a wall when the guy I'm with turns into someone big and strong and mindless and --'"

All the tension is back and then some. Pepper hugs him tighter.

"That won't happen," Tony says. His hands have stilled, and his eyes are locked on Bruce's face. "Aside from the fact that I KNOW you have more control than you think. We can keep things chill. Rule number one, an *insane* amount of chillness. Rule number two, we talk about things. Everything. No surprises. People go crazy when they're blindsided. So we won't let that happen. And we'll take it slow, on the feelings, if there do end up being feelings. Cause, y'know, I do like you -- I like you a heck of a lot, Bruce. But right now we're just talking about some physical stress relief, so to speak. And like the lady said, are you really prepared to be celibate forever? I mean, what's your plan here?"

"When was the last time you got laid?" Pepper asks, running her fingers through the hair just behind Bruce's ear.

"That would be about six and a half years ago," Bruce says.

"Jesus," Tony mutters and winces as if in actual pain.

"The stuff you're bringing up is all reasonable to think about," Pepper says. "But I actually do believe," she pauses and kisses the rim of his ear, "that we can figure this out. We can be smart and brave and head bad things off at the pass. I mean, danger is a thing I know about; I date Tony Stark."

"It's true, she does; the woman is insanely lucky," Tony adds. Bruce snorts out something like a chuckle.

"So we don't have to do anything. We really don't." She kisses him again. Bruce feels his breathing begin to speed up and wonders when he started to get hard. "But don't let your fear of yourself make you isolate yourself more, because I really do think that'll just make things worse."

"I want to kiss you so bad it can't possibly be legal." Tony's voice is low, his eyes intent on Bruce's.

Bruce takes a deep breath. He looks heavenward, then looks back at Tony. His voice a strange blend of nonchalant and nervous, he says, simply, "Sure." To his surprise, rather than rushing him Tony leans in slowly, places one hand on Bruce's thigh and brings his lips to the place where Bruce's shirt exposes his chest. He kisses him there once, inhaling his warm, male scent. Bruce places an unsteady hand in Tony's hair, the texture softer than he would have imagined.

Tony draws himself up and then he's kissing Bruce on the mouth. Someone is kissing Bruce for the first time in so, so long and that person is Tony and Bruce is utterly absorbed, all of his fears slipping to the back of his mind. Lips yielding quickly to the gentle caress of tongues, scratch of beard against skin ignored. It's slow, soft, warm and perfect, and then suddenly it's harder but still controlled. Bruce feels Pepper's mouth on his neck and her hand slipping up under his shirt to caress his stomach. He leans into the touch and the kiss simultaneously, and, when he shifts, the fabric of his boxers is rubbing against him and he hitches at the sudden pleasure, which knocks his teeth into Tony's.

Tony pulls back, grinning, lips wet. "Too much?" Pepper is undoing the buttons of his shirt.

"No. Just... good. But can we sit up?" he asks. They reposition themselves so that they're upright, Bruce sandwiched between his two friends.

"C'mere, you," Pepper says in a husky voice. She places one hand against the cheek farther away from her and draws Bruce in for a kiss. Her mouth is hot and sweet and insistent against his and he yields completely, taking what she has to give. She wraps her other hand in his hair and tugs gently. He breaks the kiss with a throaty "ahh!" and breathes sharply back in through his nose. Pepper and Bruce exchange a look. Then she goes back to kissing him. When she pulls away, his face is flushed, lips parted. She smiles at him and says in a low voice, "Let's take a second to talk about safe sex practices. We're both clean --" she glances at Tony, "shockingly enough -- as of the start of our heretofore monogamous relationship. How about you, mister?"

Bruce shakes his head as if to clear it and gives her a bemused smile. "Right, uh, good idea," he says. "I'm clean, as far as I know. Um, I’d prefer to use latex for any--" he swallows. His voice comes out higher-pitched than normal on the next phrase, "--penetrative sex, uh, other than oral, I guess?"

In what seems like no time at all, Tony is on his knees in front of Bruce, undoing the other man's pants. He pulls out Bruce’s achingly hard cock and leans forward without a second thought, his lips sliding over the throbbing flesh. He begins to suck, bobbing his head and savoring Bruce’s shocked sounds of pleasure. Pepper is still beside Bruce on the couch and she kisses his neck, caresses his chest. Bruce's body is rigid, his eyes squeezed shut, one hand clamped on Tony's shoulder, the other on Pepper's thigh. He comes quickly with a strangled shout and Tony swallows it all, licking the last of it off his lips when he pulls away.

As Bruce relaxes back down from the high of the orgasm, he looks almost as if he's in shock. Pepper gently pushes him down onto the couch, where she and Tony take turns kissing him, stroking his hair. He just lets them at first, but then he begins to kiss back, and then to grope at Pepper's breasts. Her shirt comes off and Bruce latches onto one of her breasts with his mouth. With one hand he caresses her stomach, slipping his fingers down to brush against her waistband.

Grinning, Pepper lies back on the couch and shuffles out of her shorts. Bruce pulls off her panties and presses his mouth to her wet pussy. His tongue moves slowly across the folds of her sex at first, then faster, lapping at her clit. She moans appreciatively, her toes curling in pure delight as she lets out a series of increasingly heavy sighs. Tony, who had been watching, rapt, on the floor, kicks off his pants and steps up beside her, clad in his shirt and boxers. He smoothes her hair back from her face. Pepper reaches out and frees his hard cock, moaning around it as she takes it into her mouth. He wraps his hand in her hair and helps her work him. His eyes rove over her pale skin and Bruce’s dark head moving against her. He comes just before Bruce makes her do so, both of them gasping.

Afterwards, clothes partially back on, Bruce leans back on the couch, a hand covering his eyes. Pepper is snuggled up under the crook of one of his arms, eyes mostly shut. He strokes her soft hair absently. The smell of Indian food still lingers in the air, now overlaid by sweat and arousal.

Tony comes back into the room with a glass of water and sets it down in front of Bruce. "Hey, you all good, Big Guy?"

Bruce brings his hand down and smiles ruefully. "I'm sorry; that was wonderful. I just can't help but think about what I might not have lost if I'd had this much control years ago. It's stupid. Thank you, guys. Seriously."

Tony settles onto the couch on Pepper's other side. "While gratitude is not an uncommon reaction in my sexual partners, give yourself some credit, man. I know this was a leap of faith for you. It's kind of a big deal."

"That's what she said," Pepper yawns.

Bruce smirks in response. He goes back to his own room that night.

*

The next day, Bruce doesn't appear in the lab. This isn't that unusual; it's not like they have a punch-in clock and regularly scheduled shifts by any means. There's no reason whatsoever to worry.

Tony wastes the late morning running tests that tell him nothing he couldn't have guessed. Eventually he finds himself down in his workshop, parts scattered around him, sketching out designs for new weapon mods. That, at least, is absorbing. Mostly.

He sighs. "Jarvis?"

"Yes, sir?"

"Where's Bruce right now?"

"Dr. Banner is in his room, sir. Shall I patch you in?"

"Absolutely not."

"As you like, sir."

Not a half an hour later, Tony looks up, startled, as the door opens. Bruce slips in, hands in his pockets. "Hey."

"Oh hey," Tony says. He gives Bruce a quick smile, then looks back at his sketches, not seeing them. He's pleased at how calm his voice sounded. At least, he thinks it sounded calm? He's not actually sure. Damn it.

Bruce comes over and peers down over his glasses. "Better guns, huh?"

"That is the idea."

Bruce sits on the edge of the desk across from Tony. "Anything you're particularly excited about?"

Tony glances up at the amused edge in the other man's voice. His mouth curves into a lopsided grin as he notices the direct, appraising way Bruce is looking at him. That and the way he's sitting, legs casually spread. "There are definitely one or two things that I think merit further investigation. Here," he stands and moves to Bruce's side, holding up a random sketch, "let me show you." Their shoulders are touching.

Bruce leans in. "Hmm. Looks shoot-y."

Their faces are so close, Tony can smell Bruce's aftershave and feel the heat coming off his skin. "So," he says. This time his voice definitely does not sound calm. "Six and a half years, huh? That's kind of a long --" Bruce's lips cover his, and he makes an inarticulate sound into the other man's mouth. Warmth, softness, falling, tender. A hand cradles the back of his neck. He returns the gesture, wrapping an arm around Bruce's waist, settling his hand on the small of his back. Tony resists the urge, somehow, to crush his face into Bruce's and lets the kiss stay gentle for several long moments.

When they break apart, Bruce takes off his glasses and hooks them into his shirt, then brings up a hand and caresses the side of Tony's face. "Just wanted to make sure I didn't dream that last night," he says.

"Do you dream about me and my beautiful girlfriend a lot?" Tony asks.

Rather than answer, Bruce kisses him again, more deeply this time. They wind up on the desk, sweaty and laughing, running their hands along each other’s still-clothed limbs. Bruce pulls away, looking oddly apprehensive.

“I’m not sure if--”

Tony cuts him off. “It’s okay, we don’t have to--”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.”

“It’s not that I don’t want to, I just...”

“Too fast?”

“Yeah. Heh, which seems dumb, considering.”

Tony traces his fingers over Bruce’s lips. “Later?”

“Oh yeah.”

The workshop is equipped with its own washroom and they clean up quickly, then go out for Chinese, talking about Tony's weapon concepts in earnest this time.

*


	3. Chapter 3

The next couple of days are busy, and they barely see each other. When things slow down, Pepper suggests a movie night. That's how they end up on the couch once more, Bruce caught between Tony and Pepper. The movie started a while ago but has long since been forgotten. They've been making out for a solid ten minutes, taking things slowly. Pepper has been kissing Bruce, running her hands through his hair and very occasionally tugging, getting a pleased reaction each time. "Hey, sweetie, that thing with the hair, do that again," Tony says.

Pepper gives Bruce's hair another, harder tug, and he makes a wanting sound in the back of his throat, glancing back and forth between the two of them, face flushed, pupils dilated.

"Oh yeah?" Tony asks. Without hesitation, he reaches over and twines his fingers deep into the roots of Bruce's hair and pulls firmly. Bruce inhales sharply and releases an open-mouthed breath.

"I could be wrong but I *think* he likes that," Tony says, still holding Bruce by the hair and looking thoughtfully at Pepper. She "hmm's" in return and grazes her teeth along Bruce's neck. When she finds the spot just under and behind his ear she bites down, teasing the flesh between her teeth and licking.

"Oh fucking -- ahh," Bruce moans.

Pepper lets go and admires the wet, already-reddening skin. She licks her lips and shifts her thighs, feeling the warmth and moistness gathering between them. "Maybe we should move this to the bedroom, boys."

Tony pops up off the couch and holds a hand out to Bruce, who clasps it and rises. Pepper stands up leisurely, then crooks her finger at them and turns around, padding towards a door on the far side of the room. The bedroom is expansive, its centerpiece a California King strewn with rich-looking cream-colored sheets. They make their way to it slowly, taking time to kiss and caress. Urged on by his appreciative responses, Pepper and Tony tug on Bruce's hair and bite his neck, his wrists, his shoulders (his shirt having been discarded on the floor along the way). Pepper grabs Bruce's hand and leads him down to the bed.

Tony pulls off his shirt and tosses it behind him before joining them. Bruce has a moment to reflect on how startling the arc reactor manages to remain, and then his friends are upon him and thought isn't a luxury that his brain is making room for.

Pepper props herself up with one arm, using the other to press Bruce into the mattress. Tony looms over him on the other side, the arc reactor casting its pale blue light on him, and trails his fingers along Bruce's chest. Between the pressing and the touching, Bruce lies perfectly flat. Pepper twists one of his nipples and gets a delicious, tremulous gasp in return. Tony follows suit on the other nipple, and Bruce actually whimpers, his breathing heavy. "Anything you want to tell us about what's okay?" Pepper asks.

"The safeword is 'sarsaparilla'," Tony interjects.

"Um..." Bruce manages.

Pepper pulls back and looks at him seriously, smoothing the grin off her face. "No really, before we go any further... we're starting to get into an area that Tony and I enjoy a lot. And that it seems like --" she slides her hand down and cups Bruce's hard cock through his pants. His hips jerk, and he makes a small sound. "-- *you* enjoy, too."

"You are not wrong," Bruce says, voice shaky.

"So, anything we ought to avoid, any triggers?" Pepper continues.

"Alternately, anything that drives you completely batshit wild?" Tony adds.

"Um, heh. Uh, it's been a while... god, a *long* while... since I've done anything like this. No triggers except for the obvious one, but I don't think that'll be a problem unless you’re about to yell 'psych!' and laugh at me for thinking you were serious."

Tony snorts and leans in, breath warm against Bruce's face. "Not too much chance of that, actually." His dark eyes are wide and focused.

Bruce squeezes his eyes shut and tries to concentrate. "Um, a little pain is good, heh, I guess that's pretty obvious? Pain itself isn't going to be a problem unless there's also a lot of shock and anger involved, or maybe if I'm unconscious. Still, it's probably a good idea to just go slow on that. I can't be gagged because I need to tell you if it might be getting to be too much. It should be fine, though. And, hm, no, I don't know, stuff involving excretory functions? Really though, there's, uh, not going to be a whole lot that's not okay with me. And if you do manage to offend, I'll tell you before you can get too far."

Pepper smacks his stomach and he shivers, his eyes shooting open wide. "And the other question?" she asks sweetly.

He looks over at her, then turns to Tony and says, "Anything that drives me wild aside from, uh, that? Yeah, there's definitely something. I," he licks his lips, "I guess you could say I want to be used. Just... take what you want from me, be selfish."

"We can definitely work with that," Tony says.

"The safeword is *not* sarsaparilla for the record," Pepper tells them. "We'll just use red for stop, yellow for slow down, and green for keep going, ‘kay?"

"Ruin all the fun why don't you," Tony says.

Pepper ignores him, crawls over to a bedside table and fishes something out of a drawer. When she looks back, Tony is on top of Bruce, his mouth pressed against the other man's. Bruce's arms are wrapped around Tony's broad shoulders, holding him tightly. She gives them a minute of this as she leisurely removes her shirt and bra. When they pause for breath she clears her throat and holds up a pair of oxblood-red leather handcuffs connected by a durable-looking chain. "Sorry boys, I'm breaking up your hug. I really do ruin all the fun."

"Devil woman!" Tony exclaims and flops off to one side. Bruce looks a little surprised at the sight of the cuffs, but not very.

Pepper climbs atop Bruce's chest and straddles him. He offers up his wrists. "Good boy," she tells him. She attaches the cuffs, guides his arms over his head, and hooks the chain to a metal loop hidden along the bottom of the headboard. Satisfied with this, she bends down and kisses him gently, teasingly. She feels movement behind her but ignores it in favor of Bruce's mouth, warm and absorbing. He gasps against her, and she feels his body jerk. She breaks the kiss and turns back to find that Tony has stripped off Bruce's pants and boxers and is playing his fingertips along the length of Bruce's cock.

"Nice," she says. "That really is a lovely toy."

"I know, right?" Tony says.

Pepper shifts off of Bruce's body and joins Tony by Bruce's jutting cock. It's thick, solid, on the longer side of average. She blows on the tip and watches fixedly as it pulses. Then Tony's head moves down and he's licking thick stripes along the underside of Bruce's cock. Pepper rocks back and watches. The heat in her core builds, and she shucks off her shorts, touching herself through her cotton panties.

Tony stops licking and brings his hand up to the side of Bruce's thick penis. Then he quickly pulls it back and smacks the other man on the side of his cock. Bruce mewls in response, hips bucking upwards. Tony's breath quickens, and he tugs on Bruce's ballsack, then pinches his thigh. "You like that, slut?" he growls.

Bruce's face is pinched, his breathing fast. "Yessir, ah, *Tony*, yes."

"Ohh, I like that. I like that a *lot*, feel free to keep saying that. In fact, you have to. But just say 'Sir', 'Sir Tony' kinda makes it sound like I'm a knight." He pauses, looking up at Bruce and smirking. "Actually, we could do that roleplay; you could be my princess, Bruce."

"If 'princess' is taken, then I get to be the evil dragon," Pepper says.

"Kinky! I'm in favor. We'll start on the prototype dragon costume tomorrow morning," Tony says.

They all three laugh at that. The moment seems to stretch -- warmth and camaraderie amidst the sexuality, so familiar that it feels dangerously necessary for being so new.

Tony darts his head down and bites Bruce's hip, then his stomach, his side, hard enough to leave immediate marks. Pepper has moved away. "God," Tony murmurs, "you," bite "are" bite "gorgeous." Several gnawing, licking, sucking bites in a row at the base of Bruce's ribs. Bruce is making sounds continuously now, crosses between whimpers and moans, his mouth slack.

Pepper sidles back up to Bruce's thighs and settles between them. With firm touches, she directs him to spread his legs and bend his knees. And then there is a slick, latex-clad finger rubbing against his asshole.

"Fuck," Bruce mutters.

"Mmhm, that's the idea," she says.

"Tell me I can play with him some more first," Tony says. "I kinda just got started over here."

"Oh, you can do whatever you want, sweetie. I can fuck too. I've got fingers! And toys."

"SO many toys," Tony says to Bruce, confidingly.

"I cannot believe," Pepper says, pressing her finger against Bruce's opening, "that you are calling me out on the issue of toys." Rather than push in just yet, she goes back to rubbing, circling her finger around and around.

"That *is* fair," Tony says, "I do have the best toys. Also the most. I think that means I win." He props himself up and brings his face over Bruce's face. "Hey there, sexy thing." Bruce is biting his lip and breathing sharply through his nose. His expression is hard to read. Tony brushes his lips against Bruce's ear. "You okay with this?"

"Mn. Yeah," Bruce says. His voice comes in short, staccato bursts.

"You'd better tell me if we go too far. I will be *so* mad at you if you don't. And not 'Ooh, Daddy, sto-op' mad, like not talking to you mad." Tony pauses. "And I don't just mean in terms of your other half showing up to the party, you know that, right?"

"I'll tell you, I promise. Please don't stop."

"Aaand, we're forgetting something."

"Ah?"

"Think hard, princess. What do you call me?"

"Sir."

"That's it. That's good." Tony nibbles on Bruce's ear, squeezes one of his nipples. "I am *so* hard, Bruce. It is crazy, how hard I am right now. In fact, I'm going to need you to help me with that. Mm, in ooone minute." Tony unceremoniously crawls over Bruce and brings back a set of clover-style clamps with a thin silver chain dangling between them. He attaches one to each of Bruce's nipples. Bruce hisses and squirms. Tony tugs experimentally on the chain and Bruce whimpers piteously, tossing his head to the side and clamping his jaw shut.

"You look so good when you're hurting," Tony tells him. "I could just do that and watch your face all night. Except for the part where I desperately need to shove my cock down your throat."

Bruce groans, his eyes fluttering closed. Tony looks back and sees that Pepper has two gloved fingers halfway in Bruce's ass. She slides them slowly in and out, deeper each time. She looks up and meets Tony's eyes, her face focused, lips parted. He moves down and catches her in a kiss, fast and hard. "Love, love, *love* you," he mutters. Then he is pulling off his pants and his boxers. He tries to remember the last time he was this ready without having been touched and fails. He straddles Bruce's chest, cock inches from the other man's face.

Bruce opens his mouth obediently. Tony wraps his hand into a hunk of Bruce's hair and tugs his face closer. Bruce begins mouthing the head of Tony's cock, and Tony pushes into the wet heat just a little, desperately trying to stay in control, knowing that he'll come fast if he just starts thrusting. Inch by inch, he invades Bruce's mouth, Bruce working his tongue around his shaft. Finally, he is pressing as deep as he thinks he can without making Bruce gag and he begins to move back and forth, much, much slower than he would like to.

"Fuuuck, god, you feel so good, Bruce, so... mmf. Ah, fuck it." With that, Tony begins to fuck Bruce's mouth fast and hard. Bruce tries his best to keep up, despite how truly distracting the movements of Pepper’s fingers are. Tony grabs hold of the hair on one side of his head and holds him still.

The pleasure is bright and thorough, and Tony is no longer conscious of how hard he's thrusting or of any but the barest remnants of restraint. He just pumps his hips, again and again, coming deep in Bruce's throat. When he comes back to himself, he eases off and stretches out along Bruce's side. There are tears in the corners of the other man's eyes, and his already-dark face is flushed, his hair a crazy mess. His breathing is ragged and hitched. Tony nudges the side of Bruce's head with his face. Bruce turns to him, and he kisses him messily.

"Good boy. *So* good," he whispers. "Love you." He freezes at his own words. Bruce just recaptures his lips, kisses him more, twisting -- as much as he can without dislodging Pepper's still-probing fingers -- to bring his face in line with Tony's, to kiss him as deeply as he can. Tony reaches above their heads, finds Bruce's fingers and twines them with his. Bruce squeezes his hand tightly in response.

"Aw, look what you did," Pepper says. She nods her head towards Bruce's cock, which has softened to a semi-erect state, lying against his stomach.

"I play hard with my toys, what can I say," Tony says. "But you know, there are one or two other things --"

"-- that you might still want to try?" Pepper finishes for him.

"Mmhm. And this guy is enough of a slut for it that who knows, maybe he'll get hard again. I wouldn't say it's beyond the realm of possibility."

Bruce huffs out a small laugh at this. "Before you have more of your wicked way with me, any chance I could get some water? Please, Sir?"

"I think you've earned that," Tony says. "Jarvis, ice water." There is a clinking from a machine at one end of the room. Tony hoists himself up and collects the glass. He walks back to the bed and says "Babe, I'm gonna need him to move up so he can take this without choking. Aaand doesn't that sound ironic in context."

Pepper snorts and carefully slides her fingers out of Bruce's hole. "Jarvis, another ice water please," she says. On her way to grab it, she discards the glove. Her fingers are still warm from being inside of Bruce. She smiles and stands over the bed, sipping her own water as she watches Tony offer Bruce his. "Wow, do I actually still have my underwear on? I am so behind the times."

"Yeah, you got a little distracted down there. It's fine, though, we found something to do," Tony says.

Pepper pulls down her panties and steps out of them, leaving them on the floor. Then she pads over and sits next to Tony. She runs her fingers down his back, and he arches into the touch. Bruce takes one more sip from the carefully inclined glass, then moves his head back. Tony sets the glass down on the bedside table, then turns and catches Pepper's mouth in a series of quick, light kisses.

"What would you like to do next, dragon lady?" Tony asks her.

"Rarr! Hmm. Let's flip him. Wait, first -- I have been badly ignoring my own needs here. Bruce, scoot back down."

Bruce obliges and Pepper straddles him with her slim legs, pressing her pussy against his mouth with no preamble. He begins licking her, and she sighs, tipping her head back. Tony moves behind her and touches her back the way she was just touching his, long, light sweeps of fingertips up and down. Pepper "mm's" and presses her hips forward. Bruce's tongue swipes in circles around her clit. Tony reaches around and massages her small, firm breasts, molding his chest to her back and sucking on her neck. Pepper begins to rock her hips fractionally back and forth. Tony reaches down with one hand and strokes the top of her mound, just above where Bruce's nose is pressed against her flesh. They stay like this for several minutes, Pepper's breaths getting heavier.

"Ahh, okay, okay," she says, finally. "That's enough for now." She scoots back and settles onto the bed. "I want to come with him inside me, I think," she says.

"That's funny," Tony says. "I was thinking I wanted to come with me inside him. Er, again. Damn, by the way, just now? SO good."

"I could hear! You do *not* wait to take what you want, has anyone ever told you that? Bruce, go ahead and flip over."

Bruce tests the chain attached to his wrists, wiggles back up the bed a little and manages to roll himself onto his stomach.

"Perfect!" Pepper says. "Now spread 'em." He spreads his legs. "Farther... there, that's right."

She and Tony move down the bed and inspect Bruce's lightly furred ass. His balls are exposed between his spread thighs. Tony reaches down and strokes them, then gives them a few quick, not-too-hard smacks. Bruce's body jumps. Tony can feel himself beginning to get hard again already. Pepper smooths her hand once over Bruce's ass, then brings it down on one cheek with a loud slapping sound.

"You and that ass. Is it love?" Tony asks.

"I think... it just might be," Pepper says, spanking Bruce on his other cheek. "The things I could do to this ass..." Several more smacks, and she starts developing a rhythm. Bruce shudders beneath her, letting out breathy "ahh's!" on the impacts. Tony crawls up the bed and presses two fingers into Bruce's mouth the next time he opens it, slowly fucking his mouth with them.

"Talk about me and this ass, look at you and that mouth!" Pepper laughs.

"Mm, I am not at all unfond of this mouth," Tony agrees. The way Bruce sucks eagerly on his fingers, sends a thrum of remembered pleasure through him and makes his cock stiffen further. He can feel Bruce moaning around his fingers as Pepper's smacks get louder. Tony removes them and tugs at Bruce's chin until his head is turned enough so that he can lean down and kiss him. The kiss feels desperate, as if Bruce is pleading with his lips and tongue. Either that or he's just lost in the intensity of the sensations.

Tony pulls his face away just enough so that he can speak, the rough hairs of his mustache brushing against Bruce's lips. "You're doing such a good job," he says softly. "Such a good fucktoy." He pulls back a little further to get a better look at the other man. Bruce's eyes lock with his, and they're glazed with lust, tearing up again and pained but in no way unhappy. Reassured, Tony continues. "I'm just about ready to be inside you again. Can't wait to fuck you, Bruce. Do you want that? Tell me."

Bruce shudders, his eyes shutting and then opening again. "So much. Sir." His voice is rough, almost unfamiliar. He gasps and hisses at a particularly hard smack. "God. It's going to sting so bad after this. But I want you. Please, please do. Please fuck me, Sir." His voice is strained and unmistakably sincere.

Tony swallows. When he speaks, his voice comes out almost as rough as Bruce's. "That sounds like a plan then."

Tony kisses Bruce one more time, then sits up. Pepper gives him an exaggerated frown and massages one hand with the other. "I think I hurt myself. I spanked him too hard and now my hands are all sore."

"Love hurts," Tony intones. He smirks at her, and she gives him a large, genuine smile in return, her eyes warm. They lean in at the same time and touch their lips together, entwine their tongues. Tony cups a hand around the back of her neck and deepens the kiss. "Thank you," he mouths when they pull apart. She winks at him in response.

"Hm, I'm thinking let's have him roll back over," Tony says aloud. "I wanna see if I was right about his degree of slutiness."

"I'm in favor," Pepper says. "Bruce, over."

Bruce gingerly obeys, hissing and scrunching up his face as his backside touches the bed.

"Just be glad those sheets are 1,500 thread count," Tony says.

"Is that even a real thing?" Pepper asks.

Tony shrugs. "I have no idea, really. Ah! Aha! Look! He is totally hard, I was right! Slutty slutty pain slut."

"I’m sorry, that is officially the stupidest petname ever. I'm going to have to veto that," Pepper says.

"What? No."

Pepper looks at Bruce. "Tie-breaking vote?"

"Um," he says. His face still looks pained, but one corner of his mouth is quirked up.

"Now that's just not fair," Tony says. "Putting him in that position. Let's table the issue for now."

"So protective," Pepper teases.

"Yup," Tony says, petting Bruce's cock on the tip as if it were a good dog. "*My* pain slut. Speaking of which, geez, those nipple clamps should probably come off. Are those getting sore?"

Bruce nods vigorously. Pepper reaches over and releases one clamp. Bruce whines in response, squeezing his eyes shut. She leans down and delicately licks his tender nipple, making him shiver and wince. Then she releases the other clamp and licks that nipple, teasing the first with one fingertip. Tony, meanwhile, strokes Bruce's cock, feeling it fill further in his palm. Bruce is making open-mouthed, wordless, sounds now. Tony leans in and sucks at the spot where the head meets the underside of the shaft, and Bruce's cock pulses under his lips. A bead of precum pools up at the tip and Tony tastes it with his tongue.

Pepper moves away, then comes up alongside him and hands him a condom and a small bottle of lube. "I stretched him out some for you, but it's still going to be a tight fit. When's the last time someone had your ass, Bruce?"

"Is there any chance knowing is going to make you less likely to do it?" Bruce asks.

Tony puts on a thoughtful expression. "Hmmm. Yeah, nope, no, definitely gonna fuck you. There is a 100% chance of fucking this evening."

"About ten years," Bruce says.

"Ohh. Ah, should we maybe do more prep?" Tony asks. "I mean, there's the fun pain, and then there's the 'oh no, this shouldn't be bleeding' pain."

"I can help!" Pepper says brightly. She grabs a glove and the lube and, shortly, she has two fingers deep in Bruce's ass again. Tony moves behind her and tugs at her legs, pulling her from a seated position to all fours. Once she's where he wants her, he settles in and licks her pussy as she works, sliding his tongue between her lips and rubbing her clit with his fingers. "Aahhh, distracting!" she complains, but she doesn't tell him to stop, so he keeps at it. Bruce's panting turns into a high moan as she withdraws her fingers partway and then crooks them, rubbing inside of him. "Mm, yes, love that spot," she says shakily. She keeps rubbing.

"God, god," Bruce breathes.

Tony lifts his face from Pepper's pussy and says, "That's my name, don't wear it out!"

Pepper kicks him. "Tony, I thought we agreed you would never make that joke again."

"But Bruce hadn't heard it yet!"

"I will reluctantly accept that explanation and assume that we are now moving past this," she says. "By the way, I think we're about good here, if you want --"

"--I do, I want, I sooo want." Tony says. He licks her juices from his lips, then finds the condom. He rolls it on to himself and coats it with lube, then rubs more lube on and around Bruce’s asshole, feeling how relaxed the muscle is. "Good job here."

"Thank you;" Pepper says graciously. "And now, as my reward, I get to watch you two." She settles herself cross-legged off to one side and puts her elbows on her knees.

"Seems fair," Tony says. "Luckily, I don't suffer from an overabundance of performance anxiety." He kneels in between Bruce's legs and presses the other man's thighs up out of the way. Then he lines his cock up against Bruce's entrance. He rubs it back and forth for a moment, teasing, then pushes. With all the lubrication, he begins to enter Bruce right away. Once the head of his cock is inside, he stops, closes his eyes and just feels, breathing deeply. He opens his eyes again and catches Bruce's gaze. Keeping his eyes locked on the other man's, he pushes in another inch, then another, then another. Bruce is panting loudly, and Tony can feel his whole body shiver underneath him when he moves. Between the heat, the friction, the delicious reactions of his partner, and the simple knowledge of whose body he's entering, Tony is intensely glad to have given into temptation and come earlier... otherwise, this would've been a very short ride.

When he reaches almost full penetration, Tony reaches down and grasps Bruce's hard cock. He strokes it as he finally presses himself fully in. Bruce moans wantonly, and Tony can see his bound hands twisting in the sheets above his head. Not giving him any time to recover, Tony pulls his hips back and then pushes back in. A second time. As he begins to develop a rhythm, Bruce hisses out several pleading "yes's" in quick succession.

Tony pulls out halfway, still keeping his eyes locked onto Bruce's, and as he shoves back in, he says, flatly, "Mine."

Bruce gasps and jerks his hips, cock twitching in Tony's sweaty hand. "Yours," he agrees in a hoarse whisper. "Yours."

Tony begins then to fuck him in earnest, pulling out and ramming his way back in over and over. Bruce tips his head back and shudders, writhing. Pepper takes in everything with wide, eager eyes, her breathing almost as harsh as theirs, her fingers moving on her clit. After several minutes of hard fucking, Tony forces himself to stop. He looks over to her and asks, between panting breaths, "You want in, love?"

"Oh fuck yes."

"Undo his hands," Tony says. She does and Bruce shakily rubs his wrists.

Tony pulls out without warning, and Bruce makes an inarticulate sound of protest. "Move over, sweet thing," Tony says. Bruce shifts away from the center of the bed, onto his side. Tony tosses away the condom, puts on a new one and lubes it up. Then he grabs a few pillows and props them up against the headboard. He settles his back against them at an angle, sitting in a cross-legged slouch, and gestures to Bruce. "Now up here in my lap, with your back to me." Bruce crawls forward, turns around, and carefully lines himself up on Tony's cock. It's a little awkward and it takes them a minute, but, working together, they find the right angle and Tony presses deep into Bruce's tight heat again, holding the other man in his lap and jerking into him with upward motions of his hips. Bruce leans back, pressed against Tony's torso, the arc reactor cool against his hot skin. His hands bunch the sheets. His legs are splayed and his cock juts into the air.

"Ahh, fuck, yes," Tony grunts, "He's ready for you if you want him, babe."

"Mmm, love it," she says. "He just looks so vulnerable. Hey there, fucktoy. Look at a lady when she's about to ride you."

Bruce lifts his head and looks at her, then flicks his gaze to the side, shuddering as Tony continues to fuck him. Pepper crawls forward and grabs his chin, pulling it down towards her gently. He looks almost panicked as his eyes meet hers, which sets off a flare of worry in her chest.

"Is it too much, Bruce?" she asks. Beneath him, Tony slows but doesn't entirely stop.

Bruce grimaces and stutters out, "I d-- mm, I don't know, I think I'm ju--ah!--just a little overwhelmed." He takes a long, slow breath. "I feel, uh, embarrassed, I guess? I don't know why; you've done so many other things to me already. And I do want you to --" Impulsively, he leans forward and kisses her. She kisses him back, reaching out to caress his cock. Just a couple of strokes, and it's already leaking precum against her hand. Bruce pulls back from the kiss and says, "Oh god, I'm not going to last if you..."

She tugs sharply on his balls. He lets out a "whoof" of breath, his face pained. "Better?" she asks. He dips his chin in a jerky sort of nod.

"Have you ever been in a threesome before?" she asks.

"No."

"Hm.” Her tone turns clinical. “Vaginal intercourse is considered a very intimate, sacred act in our society. It's also stereotypically a male-dominance-reinforcing act. Do you think it's hard for you, embarrassing, to think about doing that when you're being fucked by another man? Especially when you have absolutely no control, no dominance?"

"Go go psychoanalyst girlfriend," Tony chuckles raggedly. He has finally stilled himself and simply holds Bruce on his lap.

"That, um, that I think about captures it. Wow. This is officially the strangest sex I have ever had," Bruce says.

"It's sad," Pepper reflects, "that of all possible acts, it's talking during sex that should make it strange. I think communication is very important."

"I agree completely," Bruce says.

"You're not just saying that because I still have your balls in my hand?"

Bruce is smiling now, the sight of which makes Pepper relax a little. "No, I mean it," he says.

"Well good," she smiles. "So here's the question. Is this a boundary we push tonight or no? Because I love pushing boundaries and I love fucking, but if we need to hold off on some things, that's just fine."

Bruce nods. "I'm feeling a lot better now, actually. I meant it when I said I wanted this, and I do think I can handle it. If you take it slow, and Tony stays put for a minute. Let's just try." He cuts back in before either of them can admonish him. "And I *will* say something if I'm having a hard time. Promise."

"You didn't say something just now," Tony grumbles.

"Okay, I? Did not even know what I was feeling. If Pepper had jumped me, and I couldn't deal with it, I *would* have said something. She just headed it off at the pass."

"Like I said we'd do," Pepper nods.

"I will accept that," Tony says. He nuzzles and kisses the side of Bruce's face. Bruce stretches forward and kisses Pepper once more, then turns and meets Tony's mouth with his own.

Pepper positions herself between Bruce's legs and gently strokes the tops of his thighs. She feathers kisses along his stomach, his inner thighs. She brings her face right up to his cock and extends her tongue out to just touch his slit. Then she licks. Still kissing Tony, Bruce's moan is muffled but audible. Pepper wraps her lips around the head of his cock and sucks. This time, the moan is louder, the kiss having broken apart. She sucks him down as far as she can, stroking the base of his cock with her hand where she can't quite manage with her mouth. After a minute of this she pulls back and grabs a condom.

"You ready, Bruce?" He nods, looking her directly in the eyes this time, face open and intent. She rolls the condom onto him. Then she runs her fingers between the swollen lips of her pussy and brings them up to Bruce's mouth. He opens for her and takes them in. "I don't tend to be able to come more than once in an encounter," she tells him as he sucks the juices from her fingers, running his tongue carefully over each one. "It's just a funny thing about me. So when I do, I want it to be good. I've been dripping this whole time, thinking about how much I want to fuck you. You have such a beautiful cock, and it's fun to tease, but it's going to waste, don't you think?" Bruce nods, transfixed.

With one smooth, sensual motion, Pepper straddles Bruce's lap and lowers herself onto his cock. They both gasp as she slowly sinks down, engulfing him to the hilt in her hot wetness. She flexes, tightening around him and he groans, eyes fluttering closed. "Nnf, *yes*, yess yes yes," Pepper moans as she begins to work her hips. She leans forward so that her erect nipples brush Bruce's chest and her clit presses against his pubic bone. Sparks rush through her with every rock of her hips back and forth. Bruce's mouth is slack, his eyes squeezed shut in pleasure.

"Mmm, Tony, I wish you could feel exactly how good this feels," she says

"I can feel you moving," Tony says. "It's like we're fucking through him. Like he is literally this sexual device that we're using together to get off. Kind of amazing, really. Am I, uh... good to move yet?" He licks Bruce's ear. "I can keep waiting if you need more time, fuckdoll, but god I want to take advantage of this situation."

"I'm good," Bruce breathes. "So good. Have at."

Tony bucks his hips just a little, and both Bruce and Pepper make sounds in response. "Lovers in stereo, nice!" Tony notes.

Caught between the thick cock beneath him sending bright shocks of sensation through him with every thrust, and the unbelievable heat of the tight sheath caressing his own member, Bruce is lost in pleasure, utterly fixed in place and yet floating. He's not sure how long he stays like that, but it begins to build towards a peak. "Ah, I'm going to --"

"Nope," Pepper says. She yanks hard on one of his nipples and twists. "I'm not done yet."

Bruce's eyes shoot open, and he whines out a protest, writhing in place at the intrusive shock of the pain.

"Fuck! Shit, that was amazing, make him do that again," Tony demands.

Pepper grips his other nipple and gives it the same treatment. Bruce's reaction ripples through both her and Tony, and they moan together, pumping their hips harder in tandem, working his body between them.

"God, please, don't -- don't stop," Bruce chokes out.

Pepper can feel her own pleasure mounting towards climax. She grinds herself against Bruce and yanks his hair hard, rakes her fingernails down his chest. His pleading has become incoherent, needy sounds. Without thinking, she slaps him full across the face. For a split-second, she is taken aback as the thought "*you maybe shouldn't slap a guy who turns into a literal monster when he gets angry*" manages to break through the haze of sensation. Bruce's cock jumps inside of her, and he crashes his face against hers in a feverish kiss in response, and the sharp sliver of concern is washed away. He brings up his arms for the first time and wraps them tight around her as their mouths meld together. Pepper is so absorbed into the kiss that her orgasm takes her by surprise. She breaks free and gulps for air as she feels it pulse through her in waves.

Tony's strokes have become short bursts of movement as he tries desperately not to lose control and tip over the edge. But when he hears the high, open-throated moans from Pepper that he knows so well, and feels her body convulsing through Bruce's, he gives in and lets his hips do exactly as they please. He thrusts viciously into Bruce's tightness and pleasure crashes over him as he lets go.

Bruce is beyond thought as his two lovers lose control in sequence. His own orgasm shoots through him like an arrow, achingly intense. His hips try to buck but they have nowhere to go; he is at the mercy of the bodies pinning him in place. He drops his head back against Tony and rides the sensations helplessly, his cock pulsing again and again and again. He has no idea if he is making sounds, no concept that he might ever have cause to be angry, that he might ever be anything but the serendipitous collection of nerve endings and chemical reactions resulting in this all-consuming sensation.

When Bruce returns to himself, Pepper is sprawled atop him, her soft, fine hair spread across his chest in a sweaty mess. Tony is boneless beneath him, panting harshly near his ear. All three of them are still for the first time in what feels like ages. They lie there like that for some time -- twenty seconds, twenty minutes? -- letting their breathing normalize, letting the world come back.

Pepper finds her voice first. "That... was --"

Without warning, Tony releases a high-pitched shout. Bruce's head shoots up and Pepper's eyes widen with alarm. "It's okay, it's okay, cramp, leg cramp, get off, please," Tony grits out. Pepper scrambles up and off the pile, followed by Bruce, who hisses at the thousand aches that abruptly remind him of their presence when he moves.

Tony is gripping his left leg. Pepper gently pries his hands away and massages the unhappy flesh until it relaxes.

Bruce discards the condoms. Being free to walk around the room feels strange. He finds his shirt and puts it on, then returns to the bed, easing himself down onto his side, which is the least tender option.

Tony has relaxed under Pepper's touch. He sighs. "It's gone. Eugh, that sucked." Then he and Pepper turn to look at Bruce.

Pepper blinks at the shirt. "Going somewhere?"

"No, I just felt like having it on."

She smiles. "Good. You should stay with us tonight."

"Mm, no, actually," Tony says. Pepper looks at him in surprise. Bruce's face is carefully blank.

"Not tonight." He grins. "Every night. I forbid you to ever go back to your old room. We'll have someone get your things for you." Bruce looks startled.

"He's joking," Pepper explains.

"Am I?" Tony asks.

"Yes, yes, you are. Because number one, you can't just top someone during sex and think that means you can order them around other times without talking to them about it, number two, we all agreed we would be taking this slow, and number three, you can NOT make a decision that involves my living space without talking to me first."

"So, yes, clearly I was joking." Tony says. He crawls across the bed to Bruce and ruffles his fingers through the other man's tousled hair. "Do at least stay the night, though. God, look at you. You are such an incredible mess! We should really get a picture of this; it's epic."

"I'll stay," Bruce says. "I don't know if I could walk back to my room even if I wanted to, you guys weren't exactly gentle with me." He smiles. "Which was amazing."

Pepper joins the two of them, running a hand along Bruce's shoulder. "Any sharp pains, anything that might really be hurt?"

Bruce takes a moment to take inventory. "No, nothing like that. I'm fine, just sore and tender."

"Here, get up for two seconds, guys," Pepper says. She pulls a clean sheet from under the bed and tosses it on top of the sheet they were just using. "I'm not up to changing this thing tonight, but at least now we won't be sleeping on big damp spots." She settles onto the bed, just to the far side of center. "Alright, boys, c'mere. It's cuddle time."

Tony gestures for Bruce to go first. He lies down in the middle of the bed next to Pepper. Tony follows, lying down on Bruce's other side. Together, he and Pepper wrap Bruce up in their arms and pet his hair, stroke his arms. After a few minutes, he takes the shirt back off and chucks it over the side of the bed. They all snuggle in close, Pepper pulling a sheet over them and Tony telling Jarvis to shut off the lights and to cancel their morning appointments. In the darkness, the arc reactor glows like a nightlight. Bruce supposes it's something you get used to.

Not long after the light goes out, Bruce's breath begins to catch. Pepper kisses his forehead and says "It's okay, sweetheart. You're still coming down. If you need to cry or whatever, we've got you, you're safe."

"Whatever you need," Tony affirms.

Bruce's breath skips a beat. "This doesn't make any... I don't know, I'm fine, that was all great," he says.

"This can happen after intense sessions. And you haven't exactly had a lot of closeness in your life recently, so there's that, too. However your body wants to let it out -- as long as you're not feeling like it's getting dangerous -- it's fine. You'll feel better after," Pepper explains in a soft, soothing tone. Tony just keeps kissing him, his hair, his neck, his shoulders. When Bruce begins to let go, they both hold him tightly. It lasts for a couple of minutes, quiet, shaking sounds that steal Bruce's breath, that might or might not be crying. When it's over, Pepper kisses his forehead, then jumps up.

"You were fantastic, Bruce. So strong and fucking gorgeous. Perfect," Tony whispers to him. Bruce turns towards Tony and embraces him, they press their bodies together in silence.

Climbing back in bed, Pepper lays herself against Bruce's back and hands him a couple of crumpled tissues. He breaks apart from Tony, blows his nose once. Pepper takes the tissue from him and chucks it off to the side. "Thank you for being so brave," she tells him.

Bruce lays back down flat on his back. "Well, it took a lot of courage both ways," he says. "To purposefully hurt a guy who can... be the guy I can be."

"Not courage," Tony says. "Just trust. Which goes both ways here, obviously. You *are* okay, though?"

"Oh yeah," Bruce says. "Pepper was right, whatever that was just had to bubble up and move on. I guess it's a pretty intense position to be in, what I was doing with you guys? But it felt so amazing and...just, right. I mean, I've known what I like in theory for a long time, but in terms of reality... this is definitely farther into a space of -- submitting, being dominated? -- than I've ever gone before. And it's without a doubt the best thing that's happened to me in a long, long time. Sorry, kind of a long answer to your question."

"No no, quite alright..." Tony says. "So now I'm curious. Your interest in submission and/or being dominated, *does* that extend beyond sex?"

Bruce nods. "I don't want to get ahead of ourselves. But if this ends up being a thing, which I'm still not convinced is a safe or smart idea for you guys but I'm going to stay open to it, if either of you ended up, uh," he pauses, "telling me what to do from time to time outside of sex. That would be something we could work out."

Pepper laughs softly. "Do you want to be our pet, Bruce?"

"Um," he replies.

"I'm kidding,” she says.” Or, let me take a page from Tony's book, except I'll actually explain myself, and say that, yes, I'm kidding but that doesn't mean the sentiment *couldn't* be real. If we all decide to keep moving in this direction, we can feel out the dynamics as we go along."

"Cool," Bruce says. "That sounds good."

"Damn right it does," Tony yawns.

Bruce takes the longest to fall asleep. It's been a long time since he's slept with anyone, much less had warm bodies on either side of him. He stares up at the ceiling, lost in thought. Finally, he, too, slips away.

*


End file.
